Chrichton was a brilliant author, but was a spiritual wackaloon! His autobiographical book Travels must have set me back 4 or 5 years on the road to rationalism cause I was searching for auras and other claptrap. The dude believed in spoon bending! How this happened to such a brilliant and seemingly rational mind I'll never understand.

Someone should have locked Crichton in a room with James Randi for a few days.

He often misunderstood the science he used in his books. For example, chaos theory and black body radiation, both used in Jurassic Park, he got completely wrong.

Davros, Attorney and Pieces of LawKeeping up appearances is a very important activity in religion; in fact, maintaining tattered illusions is its main activity. - Richard Wade, on Friendlyatheist.comWe make an idol of our fear and call it God. -Ingmar Bergman, The Seventh Seal

Ubi Dubius wrote:He often misunderstood the science he used in his books. For example, chaos theory and black body radiation, both used in Jurassic Park, he got completely wrong.

Really? Explain please!

Roy Hunter wrote: I am sick to death of idiots on arts shows who basically say "this book can't be literature because you see people reading it on the bus". There is nothing wrong with being both popular and good.

It's true that there are a lot of pretentious snobby gits who think that raving about unreadable pseudo-philosophical elite bullshit makes them better than the plebs you see reading on the bus! I'd rather be a pleb and enjoy Michael Christchton and his ilk!

What’s this shitty place? I’m off to another Kali Yuga! BrahmaAre we a butterfly’s dream or is the butterfly our dream - and who really gives a toss? Lao TsuQuit hassling me, you sicko! JobWhat? You gonna waste all of ‘em? Even the falafel sellers?Lot Ya mean I gotta honour them fuckers that dumped me in the Nile!? MosesWHERE THE HELL DID I PARK MY DAMN KARMA!ShakeYerMuni BuddhaDon’t step on my blue-suede sandals! Blue blue blue-suede sandals!Ol’ J CYou what Gabe!? Not even a wee sausage after Ramadan?MohamOh shit! It’s gonna be one of them bad-vibe incarnations! Dalai L

I will miss Crichton. I've read several of his books (The Andromeda Strain, Jurassic Park, The Lost World, Airframe, Timeline, Prey, State of Fear, Next) and enjoyed them all so far. Still need to get Pirate Latitudes (shame on me). There was talk of a book being released posthumously some time this Autumn, but it was only one third finished when found and HarperCollins are getting someone else in to finish it. I know i'll get it, but it won't be a true Crichton novel.